Jugements and Decisions
by Sarasi
Summary: Marco's father watches as the other Animorphs plan for a mission. He is shocked as he watches the Animorphs (pratically children in his mind) change from teenagers and become the ruthless soldiers that fight in this war....


Judgment and Decisions

A/N: Wow, my very first finished fic! And it what only 3:59 a.m., yay! I made it! Anyway, this my very first Animorph fic. I'm not sure what books it takes place between. I just know, Tom is dead, Jake's parents are controllers (?) and the rest of the Animorphs parent's are staying in the Hork-Bajir Valley. Sorry, just finished reading #49, yup, I know the last book already cam out, but the last book I read before taking a LOOOOOOOOOONG break from Animorphs was read sometime last year. Sorry if the character are a little OOC (out of character) but like I said, its been a while. Not one of my best works, but I'm proud of it, considering I actually finished it. Whatever though, basically, hope you like it. I don't mind constructive criticism ( actually that would be good, it would definitely help my writing) so come one BRING IT ON! Ok, sorry, definitely need more sleep! ^^;

*New A/N: Ok, just wanted to make some minor grammar corrections. He he :J that's what I get for trying to write this at four in the morning. Like I said, just a few minor changes, so the story still the same. 

*Oh yeah, Animorphs and its characters aren't mine. I'm just borrowing them.

Judgment and Decisions

By Sarasi

We watched them. 

Silently they calculated, weighed, and determined every outcome of their plan; considering traps, deaths, and risks.

To us it was astonishing, frightening even, but for them…. it was just another mission. Another possibility for death. Sure, they had no intention on going into a kamikaze mission, but really was there any plan that wasn't in a time of war?

We stood around them, us, the parents, as the Animorphs, the only savior's of our planet planned.

Usually, while the kids were inside planning their missions, we, the adults were outside, building, laughing. It had been different today. I knew from Marco that the Animorphs had been planning a raid on one of the Yeerk bases. 

I had asked if I could attend it. Eve was talking to that little Hork-Bajir named Toby while. I knew that Cassie's father had gone with her to talk to Toby about the Hork-Bajir anatomy. So, in general, I wanted to spend some time with my son. Marco had given me a dirty look, saying something about how embarrassing it was to have one of your parents around when you were hanging out with your friends. We both laughed at that, knowing, this was something more than 'hanging out'. For some strange reason, that thoughtscared me this time. I wanted so much just to tie Marco down on his bed and lock him in a room until this stupid war was over. Ironic really.

Marco and I had argued some, drawing the attention of the rest of the human parents. It was from my request that they had gotten the idea that they too wanted to see one of their children's meetings.Soon, it had turned into a full out scream-fest as the rest Animorphs joined in and went head to head with each of their parents.

It was so trivial really; our children had gone into meetings without us since the beginning. It was the missions that scared us really. The idea that our babies would never come home was what usually got us arguing with them. Now for some reason, we needed to see them as they planned.

In the end Jake had gotten us all to calm down. Our argument had taken a few minutes, something Jake was not willing to repeat. Time here, was of the essence. They needed to plan now. In the end, Jake had finally agreed. The only rule, he said, was that we were to stay silent and not to interfere. Normally, I wouldn't have taken such harsh words from a kid, but I knew he had been through a lot. All of them had. 

We went into large group trees, several feet away from the rest of main camp of the Hork-Bajir tribe. They gathered together, Marco sitting against one of the trees, Jake standing stiffly against another, Cassie laying a comforting had on his shoulder. Tobias perched on a third tree with Rachel leaning against it, while Ax stood at attention nearby. 

Us, the adults, stood around them, watching intently. At first, things began slowly, as they were obviously uncomfortable with our presents. However, the discussion had soon begun. 

"What do we know about the base?"

"It is heavily fortified and on constant 24 hour watch Prince Jake. There is a 12 foot stone wall topped with barbwire surrounding it."

Rachel says, "that shouldn't be to bad. "

"Nope, are real problem comes before that " Marco says with a sardonic grin, "The grounds surrounding the wall is filled with land mines. They go on about 100 feet from it. Yeerks are obviously not known for their tact."

"Any weaknesses?" Jake asks. 

Ax nods, "the area in front of the main gate is clean. There are the gleet biofilters to get through though, but they will not be a problem. Our main obstacle would be trying to get pass the Taxxon hounds. They are trained to sense any life forms that they are not programmed to let in." 

Marco laughs harshly, "got to love Visser One. He sure knows how to welcome his enemies."

"I say we do it," Rachel states. "We have to, this is our last chance to do this before the main weapons systems are moved to the Yeerk mother ship."

I nearly laugh at this, it almost sounded like something from out of a Star Wars obsessed freak's mouth. In another reality, it could have been. 

Jake nods then asked, "is there away in?"

This time Marco speaks, "none really, but we need to go in and destroy everything from the inside. So, I figure, the best way to go is down. We can dig our way through, starting just beyond the mine boundary. Then we dig under them and then under the walls. There's an old cavern built there. If we can find away to blow it up, the ground over it will become unstable, taking the building on top of it out."

A look of alarm passes over Jake's face, "you mean, it's a…"

Marco nods, "a Yeerk pool."

Suddenly I understand Marco's implications. He couldn't mean too…

"Jake," Cassie whispers. "What about the people in the building and Yeerk pools?" I see her let go of his hand to face him

Again silence falls on the group, each of them glances at Jake before they look back at the ground. I know now, that they have forgotten our presents.

Jake finally speaks, "how many?"

"I'm not sure Prince Jake, but-"

"How many?"

I notice, for the first time, the exhaustion behind Jakes eyes. He looks like an old man in a teenager's body. Losing his parents and brother to the enemy as well as his responsibility as the Animorph's leader, shows on his face. He grips Cassie's hand tightly as he waited for an answer. At that moment a thought that has not occurred to me for the first time, crosses my mind, _they shouldn't be doing this, they're only children._

"On estimate, over three hundred men and women," Ax finally answers. 

The woods around us are silent, with only the distant voices of laughter coming from the direction of the camp. 

Marco speaks, "we have to do this Jake. This is our only chance."

As he said this, my eyes grow wide. Marco is talking about….as if it was ok. As if those lives at the base were unimportant to the whole of their mission. In a sense they were, but…the way he said it. As if it were nothing in the world to be responsible for the deaths of so many. Through all his words, his eyes remained hard and calm. His jaws clenched tightly in resolve.

My insides suddenly feel queasy as the argument goes on. 

"No," Cassie cries out. "We can't do that! Most of them are innocent! We would be murdering them all."

Her voice seems to ring out in all of their minds as they again lapse into silent thought. I slowly scan their faces; Marco is still staying with his decision, only now there is a hint of sadness and guilt within his eyes. Rachel leans hard against the tree, thinking. Cassie eyes both read anger and sadness, while Tobias and Ax's faces remain, to all appearances emotionless. 

Then there was Jake, his face was a mask of determination. I could literally see him weighing the decision carefully. Again I am frightened at thought, it is almost as if he were the Judge, weighing out the lives of his team, the enemy, and the casualties that come as a result of it all. As I look at the faces of all the Animorphs around him, I notice, they to are weighing lives. Even Marco and Cassie. 

So, Tobias suddenly says. If we don't go in, the Yeerks get another powerful weapon to try and kill us with. If we do, three hundred plus people get to die too, maybe, even possibly taking us along with them. 

His voice is calm, collected, as if he is trying to figure out the next move on a game board. I never knew much about Tobias, save for the things that Marco had told me about him. Still, I had met him personally. He was a good kid. Now though, it seemed, just like the others, his personality had disappeared and turned into this ruthless war general. 

Cassie suddenly smiles, "maybe we could set off an alarm to try-"

Marco interrupts, "to risky, we can't take the chance that they'll get the weapons out before the place blows."

Rachel's eyes are hard as she considers the words of her teammates. She too, has become a cold warrior, while Ax remains silent. I am not very good at reading his reactions, but his eyes, they were as calm and cold as Rachel's.

As my mind suddenly returns to reality, I notice that all the other parents have left. There is only me, and the rest of the Animorphs. The fears I've felt before this meeting are suddenly increased. I realize now, why exactly Marco and the others had not wanted us, the adults, in here. They new what they would have to talk about, what they would have to decide. In away, they were trying to protect us.Again, there was so much irony in that. Weren't _we_ supposed to protect _them_? 

It is only now, despite it all, do I realize the pain that this war has caused, not only for Marco, but the for the rest of the children as well. 

I find myself leaving the area, following the footsteps of the other parents. My mind is reeling at the decisions being made within that meeting. Me, I simply walk away from it, but them, our children, they must stay there and weigh everything out. They must decide, who lives and who dies, themselves or their enemy. In this war, as in every other, there is no black or white, only grey. 

A/T: OK, well, there ya go! Tell me what you think! 


End file.
